


Descent

by KivaEmber



Category: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor
Genre: Angst, Body Horror, Canon Compliant, Disturbing Themes, Gen, Psychological Horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-08
Updated: 2014-06-08
Packaged: 2018-02-03 21:11:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1757127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KivaEmber/pseuds/KivaEmber
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Abel died, he walked the long road of purgatory - and ended up in the wilderness of Hell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Descent

The blue of the sky hurt his eyes.

Seen between his splayed fingers, trembling, copper tang in his mouth, the blue sky bore down on him, broken only by the silhouette hunched over him, arm raised high. Abel wanted to speak – but couldn’t – his mouth hurt too,  _everything_  hurt, and he tried – speaking, gurgled instead, the blue of the sky swallowing up everything until it was a mess of colours.

_what was happening_

Cain’s expression was unrecognisable. Abel had never seen that look before.

_did i fall over_

Abel’s arm fell weakly, landing on the grass behind his head. Something sticky was clinging to his fringe, and he tried speaking again. Gurgled. Was this… blood in his mouth? Maybe he bit his tongue?

_my head hurts_

“…Kkcch…” Cain, he wanted to say. He wanted to laugh, even though he hurt, because how  _clumsy_  of him! He must’ve fallen over when tending to the sheep, slipped into a crevice again, and Cain must’ve ran over in concern. It happened a few times – but this time was- he never hurt this much before.

The blue was blinding. Cain’s arm, raised high, was trembling. What was he… holding there…?

_cain it hurts_

“C-Cain-” he gasped, trying to lift his hand again. Why wasn’t he doing anything? Oh, his poor brother was probably in shock – if he looked as bad as he felt. How badly did he fall over…? Was he at the base of a cliff? No, he could just see the sky over him. Maybe he-

Cain’s arm suddenly swung down, and Abel recognised the object he was holding a split second before it hit him.

_why are you-_

The rock smashed into Abel’s skull with a sickening crunch, and that was the end of that.

 

* * *

 

Blackness was what Abel saw when he opened his eyes next.

It was like an opaque sheet, and he lifted his hands, expecting to touch a thick, heavy cloth of some sort. His hands met air, and Abel frowned, stretching his hands out further. He could see them, clear as anything, but in this sort of light he – shouldn’t. Red speckled his fingers, and Abel drew them back, holding them before his face as he stared.

Blood?

Abel sat up.

The blackness stretched out all around him, a massive, terrifying void of _nothing_. Was there a floor? There must be if Abel had been lying on it, but he couldn’t see it – and when he reached out, his hands passed through nothing. He was, effectively, sitting on air.

At first Abel wasn’t concerned. He may be dreaming. This happened sometimes, where in sleep he would think of strange, nonsensical things, but he would always wake up and would tell Cain about it, who would say that he was a little strange, to think of such things. Apparently Cain never had these ‘dreams’, and neither did their mother or father. It was unique to Abel, something he was quietly proud over, even if he knew it was purpose a bit sinful of him to take pride of something so strange and unknown.

So Abel stood up and went to explore this strange dream.

 

* * *

 

Abel found a lamb.

It was a small, beautiful little thing, bleating sorrowfully. Abel recognised the behaviour and noise – a lamb separated from its mother. The moment it saw Abel, it had bounded over to him, bleating, and Abel had scooped the tiny thing up into his arms, if only because walking in pitch blackness had been so boring and, admittedly, scary. Having the warm, squirming thing cradled against his chest made him feel better.

It was then that Abel noticed something odd about it – the lamb’s chest was stained with red – blood – and a gaping slit open on its throat. Still, it bleated.

Abel was disturbed, but didn’t let it go.

 

* * *

 

Abel found a flock of lambs.

One by one he found them, their bright white pelt growing duller and duller until the last he found was a deep, dreary grey. The last lamb was quiet, its milky white eyes staring at Abel with something like accusation. The blood mottled on its chest was a deep brown, and it stank.

Abel didn’t like this dream anymore.

The lambs followed him, their bleats ringing in his ears, and his arms were tight around the first lamb he found. The first lamb was bright white, and it had stopped bleating and was asleep in his arms. The blood against his chest was still wet and warm. Abel felt it against his fingers. The lambs behind him continued to follow him as he walked in the blackness, their cries filling him with something like fear.

What was this dream? He never had one like this. It felt – awful. He felt awful. What did these lambs want? What did it mean? God, is this some sort of message? Were you always unhappy with the blood sacrifices he offered to you? Please, tell him, stop making these lambs follow him!

The lambs continued to bleat. Abel let out a quiet sob.

 

* * *

 

There was no God here.

Abel had stopped walking. The flock of lambs jostled around him, finally quiet – although the last lamb continued to stare at him dully, its demonic gaze not wavering in the slightest. Abel trembled in fear.

Because that was what these lambs were; demons.

He was being tried, he must be. This was his punishment in having these ‘dreams’. God must have found out and was now giving him a Just punishment. Cain always warned him when he discussed these dreams, but he didn’t listen… when he woke up, he was going straight to brother and confessing his sin about this. His brother would know what to do – what the proper way to repent would be.

He held the first lamb to his chest – it was his shield, this first lamb, and he sat on the blackness, in a small ball, the lambs moving around him with their milky white eyes, staring, and he trembled, waiting for this to end.

 

* * *

 

Abel did something unforgivable.

Although the lambs he raised would become sacrifices, Abel always treated them kindly. They were like his children, almost, and he enjoyed making them happy – and their deaths as painless as possible. Those that weren’t sacrificed lived long, happy lives under his care, and he always ensured that they never fell prey to wolves and demons, keeping them dry and warm in the storms that came, ensuring they stayed cool in the blistering heat. Abel loved his sheep, his flock, and would always protect them no matter what.

But in this blackness, Abel did something unforgiveable.

He didn’t know why he did it.

The last lamb, with the accusing stare and milky white eyes and brown chest and most certain a demon in disguise (it had to be), lay broken at his feet. Its eyes were rolling madly, but Abel just drove his heel into its throat – its head – its eyes, his screams echoing in the blackness, crushing it, crushing it, crushing,

**_stop staring at me like that stop it stop it stop it stop it_ **

Those eyes continued to stare.

 

* * *

 

Abel didn’t know how much time had passed before he realised he was dead.

He killed most of the lambs by now, except for the first. His hands were sticky with blood, his face too, and Abel spent his time dragging his feet through the blackness. He felt like something was scraping at the insides of his chest, ripping out everything that made him Abel and leaving him as a hollow, disgusting parody. The first lamb trotted at his feet, bleating.

Where was he going?

Where did the dead go?

Abel knew of death – it was what took his lambs, his sheep, when he sacrificed them. He always thought they would be taken into His arms, and enjoy a blissful afterlife in heaven. To think that he had been sending them here, to this endless, bleak, blackness, was awful. What a horrible fate he had condemned them to! The guilt ate through his guts.

This was the afterlife. It wasn’t heaven at all. This was the final destination of Man. He knew that eventually, humans would die, as they were not immortal like Him or His angels, yet… Abel always thought…

He thought if one lived piously, devoted to His rule, then they would go to heaven, forgiven for the sins of their parents. Had it all been a lie…?

And how had he died? He remembered… so much pain, and Cain, leaning over to him. His brother had been crying… had he fallen? No, there was… a rock? His brother had been holding a rock.

…

Abel daren’t let that suspicion take hold, so he continued to walk.

 

* * *

 

Cain killed him.

The first lamb’s broken body made him want to vomit.

Cain killed him.

The moment this truth blossomed like a rotting flower in his mind, Abel felt something inside of him snap. He couldn’t remember what- he- everything had went red, and the next moment, the lamb – the beautiful first lamb was…

Cain killed him.

Abel dug his fingers into his hair, gripped, yanked, and screamed. The blackness echoed his howls.

 

* * *

 

Would his brother eventually end up here too? If Abel was here, then Cain should arrive here, for this was Hell, and his brother deserved retribution for what he had  _done_.

 

* * *

 

The blackness was broken by a whispering, pale light. It spoke to him in a tongue that wasn’t human, beguiling him, beckoning to him, and Abel followed, hollow-eyed and hungry. So hungry. When he first arrived here, he hadn’t felt such earthly things, but recently, his stomach had been gurgling, and a bone deep hunger gnawed on his insides. So hungry.

He was so hungry.

So hungry.

 

* * *

 

The pale light had been a spirit, and Abel had devoured it whole.

 

* * *

 

Soon, more whispering lights came. They came to him, called out to him, and Abel devoured them when they did. Soon, they stopped calling out to him. They shuddered in fear when he came, cringing and crying out in that inhuman tongue, but Abel didn’t care. He was hungry, and they made the pain stop, for a little while.

It was after the hundredth light that he realised these were human souls.

 

* * *

 

Abel found he liked watching the lights squirm when he had them in his grasp. It was like a moth frantically flittering against his palms, and he would dig his claws, black and sharp, into the light, listen to the inhuman – no, human tongue – squeal and cry out – before ripping it into slivers and forcing it down his gullet.

 

* * *

 

Abel’s body felt like it was on fire. Everything hurt.

His arms had cracks in it – fire seethed beneath his skin, glowing red through the cracks, and Abel dug with gutso into a new soul – bright and larger than past generations. It was almost the size of a lamb, and he tore into its soft belly, ripping everything out, because everything hurt and he wanted to drown it all out.

What was happening to him?

Enough of Abel was human enough to wonder that.

 

* * *

 

Humans matured wonderfully.

At the beginning they had been nothing more than wisps of primitive light, so delicate, so fragile – but sin had taken root in them, and when they came now, they were large – like sheep – each one unique in taste and satisfaction. The black ones were the best, so thick with sin it was like ecstasy when he tore into them. He rolled in their after-spill, laughing as he swallowed up their final screams and devoured their light. To feel their essence cling to him as he did that was- was-!

Heaven.

 

* * *

 

Abel eventually found an end to the blackness.

It was a sliver of light, thin, barely there, and he thoughtfully dug his claws into it. It was like stripping away flesh, so easily it came away, and the blue of the sky that he saw burned so agonisingly into his eyes that he screamed and threw himself back into the blackness.

He kept away from that light, then.

It terrified him.

 

* * *

 

A demon had slipped through that sliver.

It had been a weak, curious little thing, and when Abel had it in his claws, it squeaked frantically at him, its eyes bulging when he idly squeezed it to breaking point. Sturdier than human souls, this demon was. Abel giggled as he crushed it.

The demon called him master, tried offering its services in exchange for its life, but Abel just ripped off its head and ate it whole. What did he need a servant for, when humans practically threw themselves into his gullet here?

He spat the demon out immediately, though. It tasted awful.

He felt sick for days, afterwards.

 

* * *

 

More demons came. Apparently, Abel was living in the bottleneck that human souls came through when they died.

This blackness was purgatory, and humans that slipped through were sent to Hell, or to Heaven – depending on whether they survived avoiding Abel. It was interesting news to hear, especially as no demon was meant to reside here – they could come and go briefly, but Abel was the only one who managed to live here for  _millennia_.

Millennia. Abel had been here for thousands of years.

He hadn’t even realised.

 

* * *

 

Cain.

Cain.

Cain.

The name unearthed a mountain of forgotten emotion, and Purgatory was filled with Abel’s furious, agonised screams for years. He ripped souls to shreds, clawed at his blackened, red cracked skin, and writhed on the floor in frustrated rage. Cain lived! Millennia, and Cain  _lived_  while he became-  _this_! This! This monster! Monster! Monster!

Abel sank his fangs into his arm, feeling tar spurt onto his tongue, and screamed into it. He was a monster.

Enough of Abel was human enough to realise that.

 

* * *

 

Abel was before the sliver of light again.

He prowled before it for days, but he remembered the pain when the blue sky bore down on him. He wouldn’t be able to stand it – yet. He couldn’t remain here. He had to – leave. Leave – and what? Abel didn’t know, but he was suddenly dissatisfied with his life here. He had to escape, a quiet voice told him, in the same tongue as those souls howled at him when he ripped into their bellies. He had to… get out… and…

Cain.

That’s right. He’ll find Cain.

He’ll find him, and.

Abel stepped through the sliver, and under the bright blue sky.

 

* * *

 

It was like holy fire running over his body, yet Abel remained until he felt himself break into crumbling pieces.

 

* * *

 

Abel opened his eyes, and saw something white hovering over him. It took him a long while to realise that it was a ceiling. He reached out to it, and started when he saw pudgy, small arms – like that of a child. He wriggled his fingers, and confused, gurgling noises left him.

Doing just that was exhausting, though, and soon, Abel found his eyes slipping closed.

 

* * *

 

When they next opened, Kazuya Minegishi let out a bleating cry.


End file.
